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Othello, the Moor of Venice as a Tragedy

Summary

William Shakespeare’s play Othello, the Moor of Venice concerns the downfall of Othello who was a Moorish General and can be considered a tragedy. The main character who is the hero in the drama faces trouble at the end of the play when he kills his wife suspecting her of being unfaithful. The play is full of suspense and contains the theme of jealousy, intrigue, suspense, and murder creating a great tragedy as per Aristotle's order. According to Aristotle, three main things constitute a tragic drama such as hamartia, which is the tragic flaw in the character that faces the downfall. The other one is catharsis in which the emotions of the audience change in a manner that makes them learn a lesson from the drama. The third ingredient is anagnorisis, which involves the revelation of some facts that were never realized before to the character considered as the hero. Othello is a tragic hero since he fulfills all the three requirements offered by Aristotle since he is initially a person possessing noble status but later falls to a shameful one. This happens because he has the quality of hamartia leading him to suffer shame at the end of the drama. Again, Othello’s plot has catharsis experience at the climax of the drama as the play ends. The anagnorisis is experienced when Othello comes to realize the evil in Iago and that his wife is innocent. He is very powerful at first, and no one thinks that his life can end tragically, as it happens during the conclusion. Therefore, it is right to argue that Othello is a tragic drama considering the changing life of the main character from a highly regarded man to a shameful one.

Outline

  1. Introduction
    • The play Othello, the Moor of Venice is a tragedy with Othello as the tragic hero.
    • A tragic hero must be a man of high status and later face downfall.
  2. Othello, the Moor fits the definition of Aristotle’s tragic hero.
    • He is highly respected by the senators of Venice State and the citizens
    • He has heroic qualities such as courage, dignity, religious ties, sound judgment, and practice of self-control
    • His downfall is caused by his flaws
  3. Another distinct quality of a tragic hero according to Aristotle is that the cause of the downfall must result from flaws of his character
    • Othello’s jealousy is one of his weaknesses
    • Othello kills his wife, but the audience still has pity on Othello after he realizes his wife is innocent
    • The play does not end in a happy mood
  4. Another important element of tragedy Othello is the revelation of facts related to the tragic hero or anagnorisis.
    • Othello discovers that Iago lied to him of Desdemona’s unfaithful.
    • The audience is aware of Desdemona's innocence yet her husband is not.
  5. Conclusion
    • The features of tragic dramas include hamartia, catharsis, and anagnorisis.
    • Othello is the tragic hero since the play satisfies all the qualifications for tragedy as defined by Aristotle.

“Othello, the Moor of Venice" can be considered as a Shakespeare's tragedy in which Othello serves as the tragic hero according to Aristotle. A tragic hero according to the Greek Philosopher, Aristotle, must be a person occupying a prestigious estate, Prince, or nobleman, possess a tragic flaw besides having some judgmental skills, and falls from a high state to a low one (Dewar‐Watson 12). By using the criteria suggested by Aristotle, it is possible to determine whether Othello, the Moor acts as a tragic hero or not. Othello is a tragic hero since he is a respected man at the begging enjoying power and honor but later faces downfall when he murders his wife suspecting her of being unfaithful.

Othello who is a Moor completely fits the definition given by Aristotle of a tragic hero. For one to qualify he must possess qualities such as being a person of a high state, face downfall and become unhappy, and his downfall must be contributed by his tragic flaws (Kennedy & Gioia, 856).  In the play, Othello is a Moor from Africa of noble birth who serves at the highest rank in the military as the Cyprus Governor-General. He commands nobility, is confident, and very strong besides being highly respected by people of the Venice State. For instance, the treatment he gets from the senators is special such as the time when he enters a room where leaders are discussing the state matters. In fact, one member of the sitting senators exclaims, “here comes the Barantio and the Valiant Moor (Shakespeare and Opzoomer Act 1 Scene 3). This statement shows that he receives a lot of respect from other leaders and thus can be considered a tragic hero. In addition, his demonstration of confident reaction especially when Barbantio accuses him of engaging in witchcraft activities is proof that he is the hero of the land as defined by Aristotle. Again, he is a man with an African stature that commands respect from the people and senators of Venice since he is described as tall and dark. For instance, in Shakespeare and Opzoomer Act 1 scene 2, the governor of Cyprus named Montano awaits for Othello's ship to arrive after an intense storm in the Sea. He calls him brave Othello a character that commands complete respect and honor from leaders and citizens of the state (38). Othello is a man that commands high honor from everybody including soldiers and his people that call him "captain" a word that refers to a commander or a soldier of troops. He possesses a lot of knowledge and skills since he started his military career at a young age of seven years. By the time he is a grown up man he is very experienced and capable of leading the troops to any battle. This one quality makes him feel great and enjoy privileges although they do not last long due to his weakness of reacting with rage.  The other characteristics that earn him high honor include courage, dignity, religious ties, sound judgment, and practice of self-control according to the play (Bradley 66).  However, towards the play end Othello loses his self-control qualities when he commits a terrible murder crime that irritates everybody. He enjoys some power and happiness especially when the play begins but later falls to become a murderer hated by people.

Another distinct quality of a tragic hero according to Aristotle is that the cause of the downfall must result from flaws of his character and his way of making judgment leading to failure. Othello’s jealousy is one of his weaknesses besides believing the lies told by villain Iago that Desdemona is unfaithful to him. He cannot imagine that his wife can love another man and becomes extremely angry such that he cannot control his actions leading to violence. Othello should investigate the accusation concerning the accused but believes all the lies and murders Desdemona and later himself. His behavior that seems quite impulsive makes him react violently instead of trying to find out whether the stories told about his wife are true or not. Iago is aware of the moor's weaknesses and uses them to cause his downfall as he states "The Moor is of a free and open nature… And will as tenderly be led by the nose / As asses are" (Shakespeare and Opzoomer 1.3. 379). It is therefore; right to argue that Othello fits well in the description of a tragic hero by Aristotle since his downfall results from his hamartia or tragic flaws. In addition, an actual tragedy according to Aristotle contains a purgation, which can leave the audience with a feeling of justification and uplift at the end. However, the purgation does not need to be positive as Kenedy and Gioia (857) ague. For instance, in Othello's case, the audience may not feel happy and excited with the play's ending since almost all the main characters die. However, they may feel justified by the punishment in the villain thus the play transforms the emotions of the audience at it ends. According to Aristotle, a play must have the capability to arouse the audience feelings of fear and pity and later give them a conclusion, which satisfies them. In Othello, the audience pities Othello, Iago, and Desdemona but still feels fear for the couple that was enjoying a happy marriage before the conflicts set in. The worst fears come when Othello kills his wife, but the audience still has pity on Othello after he realizes his wife is innocent, stabs himself, and dies. The play does not end in a happy mood, but the punishment of Iago gives it a dramatic closure. One primary purpose of a tragedy is dramatizing the weaknesses, failure, and the despair of human beings and how they can improve their character through character analysis. Shakespeare has accomplished all the requirement of a tragic hero to bring a feeling of pity and fear to the audience. 

Another important element of tragedy according to Aristotle found in Othello is the revelation of facts related to the tragic hero referred to as anagnorisis. This may include the transformation of individuals from ignorance to knowing which may create friends or enemies (MacFarlane 367). There some things that the audience is aware of but the characters such as Othello do not know until at the end of the drama. Anagnorisis is realized towards the play end when Othello discovers that Iago made a trap and lied to him that Desdemona is unfaithful. However, it is already too late since he has committed an irreversible act of killing his wife. When he realizes that he acted with haste and that Desdemona is innocent, he commits suicide and the play ends in a sad mood. It is unbelievable that such a respectable and powerful man can behave in a manner that irritates everyone in the state. The wife of Iago, Emilia cries in bitterness exclaiming Desdemona’s innocence after the Moor kills his wife “Moor she was chaste…” (Shakespeare and Opzoomer 5.2.258). At this moment, Othello realizes Iago’s lies and cries before ending his life since he cannot forgive himself for the crime he has committed. Revealing the identity of characters, which were unknown, is also an important element of anagnorisis as defined by Aristotle. The tragic hero in Othello experiences this at the end of the play by knowing the real character of his wife and Iago, but it is too late. When the revelation is made, Shakespeare's drama climaxes as Othello faces the reality of the crime he has committed due to his hasty decisions. The audience has a climactic moment as it discovers the truth as Herzel put it that "a special kind of double vision comes into play" (498). The audience witnesses actions that have terrible effects although the agent is not aware of it. The audience is aware of Desdemona's innocence yet her husband, Othello is not. In this case, Othello's anagnorisis as the play ends is quite poignant.

According to Aristotle, there are three features of tragic dramas, which include hamartia, catharsis, and anagnorisis. All these have been depicted fully in Shakespeare's play that highlights the rise and downfall of Othello. Deceit and jealousy contribute to his tragic failure, the death of the couple, and Iago's punishment. Othello is a tragic drama and the main character, Othello is the tragic hero since the play satisfies all the qualifications for tragedy as defined by Aristotle. The main themes portrayed include intrigue, jealousy, faithfulness, remorse, death, and betrayal. The drama teaches the audience to be careful when handling difficult situations especially after receiving devastating news. If Othello investigated the issue regarding Desmodemona he could have discovered that Iago was lying. The death of his wife becomes his final blow and he realizes that he is no longer the powerful and respected man. At this point, he is very weak and cannot control his actions and his life ends tragically. Considering all the happenings in the play especially to its main character, Othello, the moor of Venice qualifies to be a tragic drama.